New Detroit splash park expected to open next month

Jul. 26, 2013

From left, Ryan Shankin, 22, of Algonac and Nolan Green, 24, of Roseville remove fence posts as crews work on a splash park scheduled to open in August in Detroit's Palmer Park. The pool there closed two years ago after vandalism. / Photos by Kathleen Galligan/Detroit Free Press

Green piles up posts. The splash park is funded by automotive supplier Lear as part of a pledge to support the city's revitalization.

When temperaturessoar, Detroiters in the neighborhoods around Palmer Park have few options close to homewhen it comes to cooling off. The park’s pool was closed two years ago when vandals removed parts of the mechanical infrastructure.

“A lot of kids counted on that pool,” said Rick Johnson, 30, a father and Palmer Park resident. “When it closed two years ago, there wasn’t anywhere for them to go.”

But by mid-August, area residents should have a new place at the park to beat the heat: a state-of-the-art splash park. Construction began near Merrill Plaisance Street this month.

The Palmer Park Splash Park is funded by Lear, a Southfield-based global automotive supplier. The park is part of a $5-million, 10-year pledge made by the company in 2010 to supportthe city’s revitalization efforts.

Lear also promised to build a picnic shelter and remodel the former pool house into a community center. Likewise, the city has promised to build a new playscape adjacent to the splash park area and is working with the group People for Palmer Park on the design

No cost estimate for park was available, but last year, Lear spent $750,000 on a similar project in the Joseph Walker Williams Park in Detroit, according to the city.

Palmer Park was selected by the city’s Recreation Department for the splash park in part because of the presence of People for Palmer Park, a nonprofit that has adopted the park, said Rochelle Lento, president of the group.

“The city has confidence in the degree of our efforts,” Lento said. “They knew we would take ownership of the project; they look for parks where there is a strong community and strong leadership.”

The organization also has launched an intensive summer recreational program in tandem with the splash park’s construction. It includes weekly organized bike rides, baseball, tennis lessons and free yoga and tai chi classes.

The splash park also will get rid of an eyesore.

“The pool was overgrown with weeds, and it was full of all kinds of wood and junk,” said Giovanni Galati, 24, of Shelby Township, the general contractor of the splash park.

It is obvious to Galati how much the community anticipates the splash park’s opening and appreciates the efforts of Lear and People for Palmer Park.

“They’ve been coming up and saying thank you and that they’re happy we’re here,” Galati said.